DOWN...AND OUT CITING HIS CRUSHING DEBTS, ART MODELL IS TAKING HIS BROWNS TO BALTIMORE

Instead of the customary shower of dog biscuits, jagged chunksof ice rained onto the Cleveland Stadium turf late Sundayafternoon from the Dawg Pound, the end zone section that foryears has been the province of the Cleveland Browns' most rabidfans. The Pound's "tough love" had turned mean-spirited asmissiles that could tear a hole in a person's scalp landed nearsecurity guards and Cleveland police positioned on the field.The Dawgs were upset not only that the Houston Oilers were inthe process of crushing the Browns 37-10 but also because theyhad learned a day earlier that owner Art Modell had entered intoan agreement to move his team, a Cleveland institution for 50years, to Baltimore.

ROT IN HELL MODELL read one of the many hate-filled end zonesigns. As the clock wound down, someone lobbed a firecrackerinto the end zone. Then the old stadium resounded with impromptuchants--mean, threatening, crotch-grabbing imprecations directedat the 70-year-old owner. Except that he was not there to hearthem; anticipating anger that might turn to violence, Modell hadstayed away from his regular seat for the first time in the 34years that he has owned the team.

In the middle of the end zone mob stood John Thompson, a34-year-old computer-parts salesman, who, as the unofficialleader of the Pound, always wore an oversized, floppy dog mask.On Sunday he wore no mask, only a long face. "You wouldn't weara dog mask to your brother's funeral, would you?" he said sadly.

After the game the unrest continued. At the 64-year-old stadium,fans can stand in the concourse just outside a door that opensto a hallway leading to the Browns' locker room. If that doorand the locker room door are both open, the players and coachescan hear the crowd milling on the concourse. Fifteen minutesafter the Oiler rout, about 50 angry fans gathered there,screaming epithets whenever the doors were open. "Give usModell!" one of them shouted. "Bring us Modell!"

Having spent the upsetting afternoon watching from the Clevelandsideline, former Brown great Jim Brown, now an adviser to theteam, likened the surrealistic day to another horrible Novemberafternoon, in 1963. "It's like the game we had to play afterKennedy got killed," he said.

With little warning a disturbing era has begun in the NFL. Callit the Franchise Free-Agency Era. On Monday, Modell and Marylandofficials, including Governor Parris Glendening and Baltimoremayor Kurt Schmoke, formally announced at a press conference inthe parking lot at Camden Yards that the storied Brown franchisewould move to Baltimore after this season. And late this weekOiler owner Bud Adams is expected to sign an agreement inprinciple to begin play in Nashville by 1998, if Tennesseeofficials can meet certain financial goals by March 1996.

In the meantime Cleveland city officials were desperately tryingto keep the Browns from relocating. A Cleveland delegationheaded by Mayor Michael White flew to New York City on Sundayand met with NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue, claiming thatModell had turned his back on loyal Cleveland fans to sign asecret agreement with Baltimore on Oct. 27. On Monday, Whitesought a restraining order barring the Browns from moving. Whilethe league may sympathize with Cleveland's fans, it isvirtually powerless to stop Modell or any other owner frommoving his team. Even though an NFL rule states that 23 of the30 team owners must approve a franchise shift before it can takeplace, a 1982 court decision that confirmed the Raiders' rightto move from Oakland to Los Angeles established that the leaguehas no legal authority to enforce the rule.

Since the completion of the NFL-AFL merger in 1970 fourfranchises have moved (the Oakland Raiders have done so twice).At the time those moves were announced, none of the teamsinvolved had drawn as well as the Browns have since they beganplay in the old All-America Football Conference in 1946. Afterjoining the NFL in 1950, Cleveland immediately became theleague's dominant team for the next 15 years, appearing in ninetitle games and eventually putting 13 players into the ProFootball Hall of Fame. Even though at week's end the Browns were38-51 in the 1990s, their average attendance since 1990 (70,407)is fourth in the league.

Consequently the Browns' move is far more disconcerting than thedeparture of the Cardinals from St. Louis to Phoenix in 1988 oreven the Colts' deserting Baltimore for Indianapolis four yearsearlier. It is stunning because Modell, a Brooklyn high schooldropout, has always been the ultimate team player among NFLowners. As the league's chief TV negotiator for three decades,he closed deals with the networks totaling $8.4 billion. Modellcould always be counted on to do whatever was necessary tobenefit the entire league, including giving up old rivalries andshifting to the AFC to help strengthen that conference in 1970.He believed what was good for the league was good for hisbeloved Browns, who haven't won an NFL title since 1964. "I'dgive up 10 years off my life to get to a Super Bowl," he told SIlast year.

Modell, who owns 51% of the Browns, is one of a handful ofremaining owners whose primary source of income is their team,which is, oddly, one of the reasons he was compelled to move theBrowns. "I don't own oil wells or shopping malls like someowners," Modell has said. "Football is my only business."

In 1974 Modell had to borrow $10 million to build luxury boxesand a modern scoreboard in his cavernous stadium. That was inthe days of 20% interest rates, and the loan, says Modell, sentthe Browns into a downward financial spiral. Over the years theteam has continually borrowed money to pay off loans or to meetits payroll as player salaries have escalated--even though theclub has been grossing $60 million a year.

In March the Browns agreed to a $17 million deal with free-agentwideout Andre Rison, but before they could sign him, Modell hadto personally guarantee a $5 million loan to pay Rison's signingbonus. For the stadium alone, sources say, Modell has had tocome up with $65 million for assorted expenses andrefurbishments over the last 21 years. The Browns have paid thecity of Cleveland an average rent of nearly $450,000 a year forthe stadium, and the team receives no revenue from parking andother concessions. Most NFL teams get a fat cut of thoserevenues. Modell was convinced that he could never earn therevenue in Cleveland that he needs to compete with wealthy teamslike the Dallas Cowboys and the Miami Dolphins.

Still, Modell is the majority owner of a franchise valued atapproximately $160 million, and his net worth is reportedly $75million--certainly more than that of your average Dawg Pounddenizen, even if it is less than that of some of his fellowowners.

As of Monday, Tagliabue had not discussed the Browns' move withModell, who had been one of the commissioner's most trustedallies. Part of the agreement that Modell signed with theMaryland Stadium Authority states that he will join in a lawsuitagainst the city of Cleveland or the league if either one seeksto halt the move. The NFL's suing Art Modell would be like WardCleaver's suing the Beaver.

Yet Modell and Adams are not the only restless owners. As manyas eight of the NFL's 30 teams are plotting moves to new citiesor new stadiums. To understand why, it is necessary tounderstand recent NFL economics, particularly the impact Dallasowner Jerry Jones has had on the way every pro football teamdoes business.

When the NFL and the players' union agreed to a six-year salarycap beginning in 1993, the league thought it had found theperfect solution to skyrocketing labor costs. Each team wouldspend about 63% of the teams' average gross revenue each year onthe players. But while the average gross revenue in 1994 wasabout $62 million (meaning each team could spend, includingbenefits and pensions, about $39 million for players), there wasa glaring inequity: The Cowboys, who grossed the most ($101million) that year, and the Cincinnati Bengals, who grossed theleast ($53 million), could spend the same amount on players.Then Jones (who on Monday sued the NFL for $750 million,claiming that it is illegally restraining his right to freelymarket his team) took his windfall--plus even more money fromprivate sponsorship deals that he signed this year--and spent$40.5 million on signing bonuses for players in 1995. Becausethe '93 bargaining agreement allows teams to prorate signingbonuses equally over the life of contracts, only $14.6 millionof that huge signing-bonus pool counts against the Dallas salarycap in '95. At week's end Dallas was 8-1 and is favored to winits third Super Bowl in four years.

"What has happened," says Pittsburgh Steeler owner Dan Rooney,"is that Jones has taken NFL revenue to a new level. He's on adifferent plane with what he can do with players, because he hasall the cash to give big signing bonuses. So now you have thisfrenzy of teams looking for better deals, because they're afraidthey're going to get left at the post."

Says San Francisco 49er president Carmen Policy, "Art justcouldn't keep up with the Joneses."

Few in the league can, which is why so many teams are looking topack up for new territory. "Stadium deals have become importantbecause economics in the NFL have changed," says Chicago Bearvice president Ted Phillips. "It used to be that what wasimportant was market size. Now the determining factor betweenthe haves and the have-nots isn't market size, it's stadiumeconomics. That's why there are no teams in Los Angeles, andthat's why this is happening with the Browns."

These are the franchises actively seeking better deals:

Houston. The Nashville Somethings--they won't be called theOilers--have one very large hurdle to overcome before they canbecome Tennessee's first major professional football team. Evenafter state officials sign a relocation contract with Adams thisweek for the team to begin play at a new 65,000-seat open-airstadium in 1998, the true test will come in January. That's whenNashville's fans will be given about a month to buy 44,700personal seat licenses priced between $500 and $5,000 per seat.If enough licenses, which merely guarantee the right to buy aseason ticket, are sold, Nashville will have a team. Houstonwill lose the Oilers because the city refuses to build a newstadium--and that also means trouble for Houston as a future NFLexpansion or relocation site. "If the people of Houston believeexpansion is an option should the Oilers leave, I think they'rebarking up the wrong tree," says Tagliabue.

Tampa Bay. The Buccaneers are negotiating a move to Orlando, 95miles to the east, because of the failure last month of ownerMalcolm Glazer's seat-deposit campaign. The plan began withgreat promise on Oct. 17, when the five Tampa--St. Petersburg TVstations simultaneously broadcast a 30-minute infomercial thatsaid, in effect, that the Bucs would leave town if they didn'tget a new stadium. The campaign asked fans to pay between $190and $2,450 per seat to acquire rights to at least 50,000 seatsin a new stadium. But in the first two weeks of the four-weekprogram, less than 25,000 tickets were sold, and Glazer's sonBryan, the team's executive vice president, said that his familywas "devastated." The Bucs would play in Orlando's 70,349-seatCitrus Bowl until a new stadium is built.

Arizona. Cardinal owner Bill Bidwill spent last week trying todrum up support in Phoenix for a $200 million multipurposestadium, which he says he was promised when he moved his teamthere. But he also held secret talks with Baltimore before theModell deal was signed, and Arizona observers believe that hewill pack up his team once again, moving perhaps to Los Angelesor even Cleveland if he doesn't get a commitment for a newstadium soon.

Cincinnati. The Bengals will stay put if local voters approve a1% increase in the Hamilton County sales tax next March. Thoseproceeds would help fund new baseball and football stadiums. Ifthe vote fails, Bengal president and general manager Mike Brownsays he will consider moving the team to another city.

Chicago and Detroit. The Bears are contemplating a move to thesuburbs, the Lions a move in the opposite direction. The Lionshave a bad lease at the Silverdome in suburban Pontiac, andunless they can rewrite it and get relief, they may move backinto the city they abandoned in 1975. On the other hand, theBears have a $156 million offer from the city of Chicago torefurbish Soldier Field, but CEO Mike McCaskey is leaning towarda move to suburban Indiana, 22 miles southeast of Chicago.

What's more, the Seattle Seahawks have said they will leaveSeattle if they do not get a new stadium, and Washington Redskinowner Jack Kent Cooke is still trying to build a new stadium inthe northern Virginia suburbs. "Some owner ought to get in themoving-van business," says Pro Football Hall of Fame vicepresident Don Smith.

On Monday, Cleveland mayor White was vowing to fight to keep theBrowns. "They never even read our final package," said White,who had planned to give the Browns the city's final offer afterTuesday's vote to extend a cigarette and liquor tax in CuyahogaCounty that would have helped to defray the cost of repairs toCleveland Stadium. "Like a thief in the night, our NFL franchisehas been snatched from the community."

"Thief in the night!" Modell said to SI on Monday afternoon."I'd better count to 10 before I respond to that. I've given mylife--my blood, my sweat, my tears--to the Cleveland Browns and toCleveland. They were too late! I've been waiting for their finalpackage for six years."

While he waited, Modell saw the city help finance a new baseballstadium for the Indians, a basketball arena for the NBA'sCavaliers and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. And Modell sawwhat the waiting was doing to his chances for survival inCleveland. The Cavaliers, for instance, have 92 luxury boxes atGund Arena, for which tenants had to sign leases of up to 10years at as much as $150,000 a year. All 120 private boxes atJacobs Field were also sold. That helped to convince Modell thatthe business community in Cleveland was tapped out, contributingto the Browns' failure to lease 24 of their 108 luxury boxesthis season.

"One law firm canceled its $50,000 loge this year," Modelllamented on Monday, "then I read where they donated $50,000 tothe Rock and Roll Hall of Fame." Even if the city committed to a$175 million refurbishment of Cleveland Stadium, Modellbelieved, it wouldn't be enough to make the kind of money hefeels he needs to compete in today's NFL.

Brown vice president Jim Bailey is moving to Baltimoreimmediately to begin preparing for the team's 1996 season, andModell, unwilling to risk the wrath of the fans in Cleveland,will move to his home in Florida. Under Modell's 30-yearagreement with the Maryland Stadium Authority, the Browns willplay in old Memorial Stadium in 1996 and '97 and then move to a70,000-seat open-air football stadium next to Oriole Park. TheBrowns will pay stadium operating expenses (about $3 million ayear), but they will have use of the stadium rent-free and willkeep all ticket, concession, parking and stadium advertisingrevenue. There will be 108 luxury boxes and 7,500 club seats.The Browns will be paid up to $75 million for their movingexpenses, including any NFL relocation fee that the owners mayrequire. Another $15 million for a new training complex willcome from the sale of personal seat licenses.

In all, the Browns should be able to increase their revenue byabout $30 million a year with the move, which in the end madeModell's decision a simple one. It was the right thing to do,the owner told his wife, Pat, on Sunday night, "for the futureof the children and the future of the grandchildren." And Modellhas no doubt that his fellow owners will see it the same way."When I lay out my losses and my lack of support from the city,"he said after the press conference, "they'll see I have a fargreater justification for moving than any team that's tried tomove in the NFL. They'd be insane to vote against me."

FOUR COLOR PHOTOS: PHOTOGRAPHS BY DAVID LIAM KYLE Having been deserted by Modell, Brown fans responded in kind on Sunday, fleeing the final minutes of Cleveland's loss to the Oilers. [Angry fans holding signs; fans leaving stadium]TWO COLOR PHOTOS: PHOTOGRAPHS BY DAVID LIAM KYLE Fans' emotional appeals went unanswered at the stadium, where Modell's seat remained empty. [Art Modell's empty stadium seat; angry fans with sign]FOUR COLOR PHOTOS: PHOTOGRAPHS BY DAVID LIAM KYLE Impromptu banners revealed not only the fans' anger but also their contempt for Modell's motives. [Series of photos showing angry fans with signs]COLOR PHOTO: PHOTOGRAPHS BY DAVID LIAM KYLE [Angry fans holding banner]COLOR PHOTO: JOE GIZA/REUTER A day after Clevelanders had their say, Modell (left) and Schmoke had theirs at a joyful press conference. [Art Modell and Kurt Schmoke]

Before he became the premier postseason performer of his generation, the Patriots icon was a middling college quarterback who invited skepticism, even scorn, from fans and his coaches. That was all—and that was everything